Skip Navigation

Male Figure with Strips of Hide (Nkisi)

Arts of Africa

On View: Special Exhibitions, Egyptian Galleries, 3rd Floor
CULTURE Kongo
MEDIUM Wood, hide, glass mirror, resin, textile, and metal
GEOGRAPHICAL LOCATIONS
DATES 19th century
DIMENSIONS 16 1/2 × 14 1/2 × 13 1/2 in. (41.9 × 36.8 × 34.3 cm)  (show scale)
INSCRIPTIONS cursive on paper ahdered to figure's back reads: "[???]bi [???]tisha quere [???]e la [pluare?] [???]kweyu[m?--]" from conservation report 02/17/2023
COLLECTIONS Arts of Africa
ACCESSION NUMBER 22.1455
CREDIT LINE Museum Expedition 1922, Robert B. Woodward Memorial Fund
PROVENANCE Prior to 1922, provenance not yet documented; by 1922, acquired by François Poncelet of Brussels, Belgium; 1922, purchased in Brussels from François Poncelet by Stewart Culin for the Brooklyn Museum.
Provenance FAQ
CATALOGUE DESCRIPTION Male figure with glass mirror in eyes and torso. Strips of hide with animal hair surround figure below waist. Dark brown patina on top of head (medicine bundle missing, possibly). Lips are large and well-defined. Condition: Good.
MUSEUM LOCATION This item is on view in Special Exhibitions, Egyptian Galleries, 3rd Floor
CAPTION Kongo. Male Figure with Strips of Hide (Nkisi), 19th century. Wood, hide, glass mirror, resin, textile, and metal, 16 1/2 × 14 1/2 × 13 1/2 in. (41.9 × 36.8 × 34.3 cm). Brooklyn Museum, Museum Expedition 1922, Robert B. Woodward Memorial Fund, 22.1455. Creative Commons-BY (Photo: , 22.1455_threequarter_PS11.jpg)
IMAGE 22.1455_threequarter_PS11.jpg., 2017
"CUR" at the beginning of an image file name means that the image was created by a curatorial staff member. These study images may be digital point-and-shoot photographs, when we don\'t yet have high-quality studio photography, or they may be scans of older negatives, slides, or photographic prints, providing historical documentation of the object.
RIGHTS STATEMENT Creative Commons-BY
You may download and use Brooklyn Museum images of this three-dimensional work in accordance with a Creative Commons license. Fair use, as understood under the United States Copyright Act, may also apply. Please include caption information from this page and credit the Brooklyn Museum. If you need a high resolution file, please fill out our online application form (charges apply). For further information about copyright, we recommend resources at the United States Library of Congress, Cornell University, Copyright and Cultural Institutions: Guidelines for U.S. Libraries, Archives, and Museums, and Copyright Watch. For more information about the Museum's rights project, including how rights types are assigned, please see our blog posts on copyright. If you have any information regarding this work and rights to it, please contact copyright@brooklynmuseum.org.
RECORD COMPLETENESS
Not every record you will find here is complete. More information is available for some works than for others, and some entries have been updated more recently. Records are frequently reviewed and revised, and we welcome any additional information you might have.